Epstein Becker Green Named Finalist for Litigation Department of the Year in New Jersey Legal Awards 2026

Recognizing Excellence in Complex, Cross-Border, and Trade Secret Litigation

Epstein Becker Green announced today that it has been named a finalist for Litigation Department of the Year—General Litigation in the New Jersey Legal Awards 2026. The firm competes alongside eight other finalists for this award. Winners will be announced on October 29 at The Palace at Somerset Park in Somerset, New Jersey.

The firm's 2025 litigation results show the department's range across complex procedural matters, multijurisdictional disputes, and high-stakes trade secret and employment matters. The work reflects what today's litigation market demands: legal skill paired with business judgment and strategic adaptability.

Federal trade secret filings hit an all-time high in 2025, with more than 1,500 cases filed nationwide, according to Lex Machina's 2026 Trade Secret Litigation Report. That volume, combined with increasingly complex cross-border disputes and sensitive employment claims, is the environment Epstein Becker Green's litigation team navigates daily.

"Litigation today requires more than legal skill—it requires business judgment, strategic adaptability, and the ability to manage complexity across forums and jurisdictions. Our 2025 results reflect that combination,” said James P. Flynn, Managing Director of Epstein Becker Green and a litigator in the firm’s Newark office. “Whether we're securing dismissal of substantial claims in cross-border proceedings, protecting client hiring objectives through trade secret litigation, or managing sensitive whistleblower disputes, our litigators combine technical excellence with the strategic thinking clients need when stakes are highest."

2025 Litigation Highlights

• Cross-Border Commercial Disputes: Epstein Becker Green managed a seven-year multijurisdictional litigation spanning three U.S. federal courts and the Netherlands Commercial Court. The matter involved claims exceeding $80 After securing dismissal of substantial claims at the trial level, the firm's appellate strategy—including James P. Flynn's personal presentation in Amsterdam—resulted in reversal of disclosure orders and preservation of dismissals. The matter demonstrates the firm's capacity to coordinate complex litigation strategy across borders, legal systems, and procedural frameworks.
• Trade Secret and Employee Mobility Matters: The firm's trade secret practice handled several matters in 2025 involving restrictive covenants, Defend Trade Secrets Act claims, and employee hiring disputes. Outcomes included permanent injunctions, preliminary injunctions that survived motions to dissolve, and negotiated settlements that preserved client hiring objectives. These matters required strategic judgment about discovery scope, forensic analysis, federal versus state law claims, and negotiation with competing employers.
• Employment and Whistleblower Defense: The litigation team is defending pre-suit whistleblower claims by former employees of major organizations, managing parallel discrimination and leave-management matters, and advising in-house counsel on DEI compliance and dispute avoidance. These matters illustrate the firm's ability to pair employment law depth with litigation experience.

New Jersey Litigation Department Composition

Epstein Becker Green's litigation team in New Jersey consists of 20 litigators based in Newark, within a national Litigation & Business Disputes practice that serves clients across the United States. The department combines national experience with longstanding New Jersey client relationships across industries including health care, life sciences, financial services, technology, retail, and hospitality.

"We're honored to be recognized as a finalist. Our practice is built on the principle that litigation should serve clients' business objectives, not become a distraction from them,” said Erik W. Weibust, Co-Chair of the firm’s National Litigation Steering Committee. “That philosophy—combined with technical excellence and the ability to adapt strategy to client needs and changing circumstances—is what distinguishes Epstein Becker Green's litigators in the marketplace."

The winners in the New Jersey Legal Awards will be announced in person on October 29. For more information and to view the full finalist list, visit the New Jersey Legal Awards site.

Related Resources

• Litigation & Business Disputes—Managing commercial, employment, IP, and complex procedural matters across federal and state courts
• Trade Secrets and Restrictive Covenant Litigation—Defending and prosecuting trade secret misappropriation, employee mobility, and non-compete disputes
• Employment Litigation—Defending discrimination, harassment, whistleblower, and wage-and-hour claims
• Health Care Litigation—Advising health care organizations on regulatory, compliance, and business disputes

About Epstein Becker Green

Epstein Becker Green is a national law firm focused on health care and life sciences; employment, labor, and workforce management; and litigation and business disputes. Our attorneys advise clients at every stage of their business lifecycle, delivering practical, results-driven counsel that shapes strategy, accelerates growth, and safeguards what matters most. We serve organizations of every size, from emerging startups to Fortune 100 companies, across the health care, life sciences, financial services, retail, hospitality, and technology industries, with sound legal solutions they can depend on when it counts. www.ebglaw.com